Monday, January 21, 2013

Due to the advances in veterinary medicine, the average
lifespan of the cat has increased significantly over the years. Once upon a
time, a typical backyard cat could be expected to live about 4-5 years. Now,
pampered felines average about 14 years of good life, and a good number of our
patients are seeing the other side of 20 years! Our own hospital cat, Ginger,
was 22 years old when she developed an inoperable squamous cell carcinoma in
her mouth, and we had to say goodbye.

How did we make that decision? How do you know when the time is right to say goodbye? Sometimes the
choice is easy, or there is no real choice – if your cat has a traumatic
accident or rapid organ failure that medicine cannot treat, it is kindest to
end his or her suffering and pain. However, if your cat develops a treatable or
manageable but incurable disease, knowing when to make the decision to
euthanize can be hard.

I recently posted about my cat, Curie, who was being treated
with chemotherapy. Just before Christmas, I had to make some decisions about
her further care, and after considering her quality of life and weighing the
options, I came to the decision to euthanize her. It was no easy decision, and
I cried all day on the day I made the decision. I also cried on subsequent
days, after we had euthanized her. However, I stand firm in my belief that it
was the right decision for her. What follows are some of the factors that I
considered when making my decision.

Deciding how to feel about Euthanasia

One thing to keep in mind is that, as a pet parent, you are
your pet’s caretaker, their champion, and their advocate. Your veterinary doctor
and staff, your friends and family, your breeder – they can all offer advice to
you, but ultimately, the decision is yours. No one can make the decision to
euthanize for you, and it is both a terrible and wonderful power to have.

Being able to make the decision to euthanize your cat is a
huge responsibility because, even though you are not making decisions about a
human being, you are still making decisions about life and death. Perhaps the
decision is even harder than if it were a human being, because your cat can’t
tell you what their wishes are. This is a very emotional and sensitive decision
for most people. In my experience, as a caring human being who loves their cat,
you will almost always second-guess your decision – no matter what decision you
make - even if you know it is the right thing to do. Did I wait too long and
let my cat suffer needlessly? Did I make the decision too soon? Would a little
more time have made a difference? You wonder and worry simply because you
care about your cat, and take your responsibility so seriously.

The power to decide can also be a relief, because when you
know your dear friend is failing and there is nothing more that can be done,
you can release them from suffering and spare them the misery of crippling
pain, slow starvation or mental distress. I think most people know in their
hearts when it is the right decision, even though it is not a decision they
want to make. Once you have made the decision, you have to be firm with
yourself that the decision was the right one - made with compassion and love.

As much as we may hate to admit it, for many of us,
financial concerns may come into play. We may wish in our hearts to run every
recommended diagnostic test, or try every possible treatment, no matter how new
or experimental, but for most of us, a wall of dollar signs will eventually rise
up. There is no reason to feel guilty that finances come into the equation.
What good is it for you to have a kidney transplant performed for your cat if you
cannot then afford to buy a high-quality, kidney-protective diet to feed her?

At some point, we may need to try to distance ourselves from
our cat and pragmatically ask questions such as – What will continued treatment
gain my cat?Am I continuing to treat her for her benefit or for
mine? What is my cat’s current quality of life? Will continued treatment
improve her quality of life? What is the likelihood of relapse? What kind of
post-treatment care will be required at home? We may hate to ask these
questions of ourselves, or of our cat’s veterinarian, but they can provide
helpful decision-making information.

Your veterinarian does not offer up euthanasia as an option
lightly. The veterinary oath stresses that top priority is animal health and
welfare, and their goal is to diagnose and treat your pet to the best of their
ability. However, most veterinarians also know that there must be a balance
between quality of life and quantity of life. What good does it do
to have extra time with your cat when you can see that your cat suffers every
day? In the veterinary office, we can only evaluate your pet based on a
snapshot in time – the visit to the office. Ultimately, you know your cat
better than we do, and are best equipped to make the final decision – based on
the scientific, objective information that we veterinary staff can provide, and
the contextual, subjective information that your cat displays at home, as well
as your own emotions about your cat’s health and well-being, and any religious
beliefs that you hold or financial factors that may affect your decisions about
your cat’s care.

Assessing your cat’s Quality of Life

Many animal welfare organizations abide by rules called “The
Five Freedoms”. These guidelines were developed in the UK for farm animals, but
are applicable to any animal living under human care.

The Five Freedoms:

Freedom from hunger or
thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full
health and vigor

Freedom from discomfort
by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a
comfortable resting area

Freedom from pain, injury
or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment

Freedom to express normal
behavior by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company
of the animal's own kind

Freedom from fear and
distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental
suffering

Evaluating your cat with these guidelines in mind can help
make your decision less complex.

Ideally, if you are preparing for the eventual need for this
decision, you should set aside some time each day or every few days and
evaluate your cat’s quality of life. Does your cat still enjoy the Five
Freedoms? Does he or she get a passing grade on the Quality Of Life scale
(shown here: http://aplb.org/resources/quality_of_life.html)?
Does your cat seem to feel “good” more than 50% of the time or have more “good”
days than “bad” days? If so, you can relax and enjoy a few more special days
with your furry friend. If not, then you should call your veterinary office. You
may be able to ask your veterinarian for alternative methods of medication or
treatments that would allow you to delay your decision to euthanize, and keep
your cat comfortable longer.

The most important thing to realize about the decision to
euthanize is that there is no one “right” decision in all cases. Each case has
special considerations and is the “right” decision for the cat and the person
or people involved.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

My Fairy Tale:My fairy tale began the moment I first
graced my royal family with my presence.My mom (the Queen) was in her palace and spotted me as a tiny wild
kitten playing outside in the garden.She ran out to the gate house and told my
dad (the King) “there’s a Siamese kitten in the garden!!”.Well, they both ran outside just in time to
see me dashing away.Mom had always
wanted a Siamese kitty so she set out a live-trap every day hoping I would be
lured back into their lair.Well I
surprised her…I didn’t come back…for a MONTH!By this time she had given up hope of ever seeing me again, but one day
she looked out the window and there I was sitting ON TOP of the trap.She thought I was quite the little
jester!So she set the trap with some
delightful tuna and went back in the palace.Three minutes later I was captured and transported in some type of
carriage to my new palace.From that day on I have been the Princess of
our palace…and I must say, I was BORN to be a Princess!

My Palace:My palace is of course quite elaborate….we have 8 cat trees, two kitty
pods, two kitty hammocks, one kitty cottage, one bamboo kitty ball bed, and the
list goes on.For dining we eat on Wetnoz Fat Cat dishes
and drink from beautiful fountains.Did
I mention the Litter Robot?!There is
also a secret passageway from the hall to the royal kitty room that keeps the
guard dogs out.

My Favorite Throne:Since I pretty much rule the house I like to
change my preferred sleeping location depending on my mood.This week it is in the pink kitty bed, but
my usual night time spot is wrapped around the top of my mom’s (the “Queen’s”)
head.I also like any look-out point
where I can have full view of my kingdom.

My Loyal Subjects:As Princess I have many loyal subjects.There are my four guard dogs who’s sole
purpose in life is to project me (though one of the Pomeranians chases me at
times), my Ladies-in-waiting which consist of several female kitties who make
sure I am clean and comfortable, my suitors which consist of several male
kitties all who completely adore me and then there is my Queen and King who
confirm for me every day that the world revolves around me.

My Favorite
Amusements:I am a bit of a mouser
so I love to play with toy mice.One
time we had real baby mice in the Palace and I got to lick them…yum!I also like “Da Bird”, my FroliCat laser toy
and my Fling-Ama-String.

My Royal Duties:A Princess needs her beauty rest so sleeping
is important to me.But I also like to
chatter at birds outside and chatter for treats and chatter when I don’t like
something.So I suppose you could say I
like to “talk” a lot.I am also tasked
with making sure the guard dogs stay in line which often
requires me to implement my papping punishment….and I have at times been heard
meowing “off with their heads!”MOL!

My Favorite Fare:Fancy Feast of course!I also enjoy tuna, soft cat treats, cheese
and any type of meat the royal family may be dining on.

My Titles:Chewbacca, Chewy, ChewChew, Cheweenie,
Weenie, Sasquatch, Sassy Sasquatch, Chupacabra, Sa-Brina-A, Sabrina the Witch,
oh and don’t forget my formal title PRINCESS Sabrina!!Ok, so I must explain the Chewbaka &
Sasquach titles…my family says that when I chatter and talk I make sounds like
Wookie.I don’t really know what they
are talking about because all I hear when I am talking is sweet music!